Christel Boeljon

Reid, who won the 2007 British Amateur Championship at Conwy the year before she turned professional, knows the course well as does her caddie, Lee Griffiths, who was beaten down the last in the quarter finals of the Welsh Amateur Championship by Rhys Davies in 2002.

She is eying her second win as a professional after her maiden win in Turkey and said: “Whether I finish second or 16th makes no difference to me: it’s whether I finish first or not. Obviously I’m going to play aggressive now.”

South African Lee-Anne Pace, the Deutsche Bank Ladies Swiss Open champion, carded a 71 to finish the day in fifth at one over par.

Germany’s Anja Monke was the day’s biggest mover after her round of 67 and moved to two over to lie level with Frenchwoman Anne-Lise Caudal (73) and the leading home players, and Becky Brewerton (69) and Sahra Hassan (72) from Wales.

Brewerton, from nearby Abergele, had four birdies and one bogey on her card and said: “The wind was nowhere near as bad as yesterday, but I’m really happy. Looking at the scores there are only two people under par at the moment. It just shows how tough the course is playing and I think it shows that there is some good golf being played because the course is playing so difficult.”

Hassan, from Bridgend, shot 72 and said: “It was solid. I didn’t make many mistakes. Overall I just holed some good putts and kept it steady. I was one under at one point but made two silly mistakes on eight and nine.”

Local amateur Amy Boulden, 17, from nearby Llandudno, added an 81 to her opening 72 but was one of six Welsh players to make the cut along with Becky Morgan, Jo Pritchard and Lydia Hall.

The 2009 champion Karen Stupples was five shots off the lead on three over par along with fellow Englishwoman Elizabeth Bennett and Italian Federica Piovano.

The 2001 champion Helen Alfredsson of Sweden was a shot further back, with England’s Laura Davies seven shots off the lead at five over par.